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00:00A workshop full of wonders.
00:03I heard the word watch.
00:05Home to experts and time-honoured crafts.
00:09There you go, that's a good sound.
00:11Together repairing treasured pieces of the past.
00:15Oh, I like that. That is really good.
00:19Wow, look at that.
00:20Wow, look at that.
00:23Quite proud of that.
00:24And unlocking their stories.
00:27I'm completely blown away by this.
00:30Oh dear.
00:31Bringing the broken...
00:33I don't know where to start with this.
00:35...back to life.
00:36Wow.
00:38Stunning.
00:40Wow, fantastic!
00:43I think it's just amazing.
00:46Yeah!
00:47Welcome to the repair shop.
00:57What are we thinking? Is it going to rain?
00:59Well, if it does, it would be good for the cars.
01:09Hello there.
01:10Hello there.
01:11First to arrive with a project for bike restorer Tim Gunn is Gary Reid from Hastings.
01:18Look at this.
01:18His hefty heirloom tells of tradition and tragedy on England's south coast.
01:25Nice bike.
01:27This is my dad's old butcher's bike.
01:29A butcher's bike?
01:30Yeah.
01:31It used to have like an advertising board on here.
01:33And as you can see, it's got a carrier on the front.
01:35Oh, yes.
01:36And then you'd put a box on there with meat and everything and then he would take it out and
01:40deliver it.
01:40He did it when he was a lad back in the early 50s in Hastings, that's where he was born.
01:46And what's your dad's name?
01:47Jimmy.
01:48How long was he a butcher's boy for?
01:49Only for a couple of years.
01:50Later on, he worked in the fishing industry.
01:52He became a fisherman.
01:54After a while, he then became a boy ashore, which he doesn't go out in the boat anymore.
01:57Right.
01:58But he just stays ashore.
01:59He helps the boats up the beach with the winch and everything.
02:01And then he sails fish in the daytime on the stall until the boat's ready to come back in.
02:06Is your dad still with us?
02:08No, he passed away in the storm of 87.
02:10Oh, that's awful.
02:11It was a very strong storm, that, as I remember it very well.
02:13Yeah, it affected Hastings in a big way. It was like a hurricane.
02:18In October 1987, winds topping 100 miles an hour battered the south of England.
02:24In the worst storm to hit the country since 1703.
02:30Its widespread destruction caused 18 deaths.
02:35And, unfortunately, that's the day that your dad went out to work.
02:38He was on the beach then, trying to help some of the boats get further up past the waterline
02:43so they couldn't get battered and washed away.
02:45Yeah.
02:45Because the sea was really rough.
02:46And a shed blew over and killed him.
02:50No way.
02:51Wow.
02:51Yeah.
02:52Devastating, yeah.
02:53He was only 49 at that time.
02:54Was he really?
02:55Yeah.
02:56Well, what happened after the storm, a friend and my dad decided to have a bike race
03:00up at this place called Crown Lane, which is like a little steep hill in the old town.
03:05Because what happened with my dad in the 70s, he had the bike in the pub down there
03:09and a few of his friends said, oh, I bet you're 10 bob.
03:12You can't ride up Crown Lane there sitting on the saddle.
03:15Because if you're usually going uphill, you tend to stand up and then try to put all your weight in
03:19it.
03:19So what one of his friends did, he put the 10 shillings on the back of the saddle.
03:24So he sat on it.
03:25Obviously, if he lifted off, it would have come out.
03:28But he went all up the hill and he won the 10 shillings, yeah.
03:31So his mate said, oh, let's have a bike race for charity to commemorate it.
03:35The first one was in 1988 and it's still going now.
03:38That's brilliant.
03:39You start at the bottom of the hill.
03:41Because you're sitting on the saddle and it's quite a heavy bike,
03:44a lot of people take quite a while to get going.
03:46Yeah.
03:47And everyone has a go and cheers everyone on.
03:50So how many people have actually ridden it?
03:52I suppose every year we get about 120 people riding it.
03:54So nearly 4,000 people.
03:56It looks like 4,000 people have ridden it.
03:59Look at the state of the tyres.
04:00Yeah, yeah.
04:01We decided to retire it because it was getting too difficult to use and dangerous.
04:06The crank down there has got loose, so it wobbles about a bit.
04:10You do get a bit wary of whether it could slip.
04:14And then also the steering has gone a bit shaky as well.
04:17And the brakes are not 100%.
04:19We really want to get this bike back in the race.
04:22I've got a bit of a challenge in front of me.
04:24But we'll give it a go.
04:26And I'm looking forward to it.
04:27Thanks a lot.
04:28We'll see you soon.
04:29Okay, thanks. Bye.
04:32It might look like an uphill challenge,
04:34but I'm sure you'll be able to get it done.
04:36We'll make it race ready.
04:37There you go.
04:38Good luck, Tim.
04:53What a story.
04:55I've seen quite a lot of these delivery bikes over the years,
04:58and I've never heard of one being used for racing before.
05:01It's a robust bicycle, but 4,000 people riding it.
05:05It's going to take its toll on the bike itself.
05:07It's fairly apt now.
05:09We've got thunderstorm going on at the moment,
05:10and I feel a bit daunted by the whole project.
05:15The cranks have obviously got an issue.
05:17One of the cotter pins is loose or is broken.
05:19The handlebars and the brakes work,
05:22but they don't necessarily work very well.
05:24I can also see here the tubing for this carrier on the front here.
05:30It's come adrift.
05:31My task is to make sure that it's structurally sound and safe to ride.
05:37I've got to start actually taking it apart
05:39and see if we can get it back to where it should be.
05:42It would be lovely to be able to put a replacement advertising board inside here,
05:47so that needs making...
05:49Oh, there's some more thunder.
05:51Wow.
05:54That feels a bit ominous.
05:56I'm working on Jimmy's bike, and hopefully he's happy with what I'm doing.
06:18From a traditional pushbike to international motorsports.
06:22Are you a bit of a petrol head? You like your cars, don't you?
06:25I like my cars. I'd love a bike.
06:27It's a tinker within garage, I think.
06:28Now you're talking.
06:29Counting on shoemaker Dean to save a much-priced possession,
06:34Paddy Brockerton from Belfast, who's come with son Gary.
06:38Hi, welcome to the barn.
06:40Hello.
06:41Hello.
06:42Great to be here.
06:43I've brought my father's motorcycle racing goggles.
06:47Wow.
06:48I like them.
06:49Such a nice shape.
06:50Yeah.
06:50Where did your father get them?
06:52Well, the British Motorcycle Road Racing Club held a meeting at Brooklands at Weybridge in 1935.
07:01Brooklands was a special track, and it was a massive event.
07:05He won the race and lapped it over 100 miles an hour.
07:09Wow.
07:09In the 30s, that is quite an achievement.
07:12Yeah, so with that, he won the Brooklands Gold Star, which signified 100 miles an hour.
07:18Yeah.
07:19And as far as we know, he's maybe the only Irish rider ever to win a Gold Star.
07:25That's incredible.
07:26Mm-hmm.
07:26And these were provided by a sponsor.
07:29Wow.
07:30What was your dad's name?
07:31George Brockerton.
07:32So, where did your dad's love of speed start then?
07:35Well, he went into the First World War as a 17-year-old, as a dispatch rider.
07:41And they had to run the gambit of bombs and gunfire.
07:46But that didn't bother my father.
07:48He enjoyed that.
07:49That was part of his make-up.
07:51So, presumably, after the First World War, his life was still very motorbike heavy.
07:55Very much so.
07:56In 1928 and 29, he won his class in the Ulster Grand Prix.
08:01And he rode in the Isle of Man TT in 1934, one of the world's most famous road races.
08:07The Isle of Man TT itself is a terrifying race.
08:10Well, it is.
08:10That's why you get the adrenaline, right?
08:12Oh, yes, yes.
08:13Growing up as a kid, though, did you used to go to these meets as a family?
08:16It was very much a family affair.
08:17And we knew lots of people.
08:19My dad was a big man.
08:21And I had an even bigger personality.
08:23He was worthy.
08:24He was great fun to be about.
08:25He knew everybody, and everybody knew him.
08:28He must be very proud.
08:30Oh, very.
08:31Very proud.
08:32And this gives me the opportunity to sort of show my pride in him.
08:36He passed away 60 years ago this year.
08:40OK.
08:41I guess you were quite young at the time then.
08:42Yes, well, it was early, 21, 22.
08:47Oh, bless you.
08:48I'm very sorry that the boys did.
08:50Yes, well, I never met him, so my memories of him are sort of photographs.
08:55My granny's house.
08:56Yeah.
08:56The trophies.
08:58And I can just imagine him doing sort of those sort of crazy speeds with those goggles on.
09:02I think my father wore them on her forehead more than he did on the drive.
09:04Did he?
09:05Yeah, just to look cool.
09:07Of course he did.
09:08Yes.
09:09The Brooklands win for him was a star performance.
09:13And it was his most cherished possession.
09:15I would like to have them in a presentable shape.
09:18I'll do my very best for them.
09:20Good luck.
09:20Take care.
09:21Bye-bye.
09:22What a guy.
09:27Different breed of person to do that.
09:29Unbelievable, yeah.
09:29Yeah.
09:30Where are you going to start?
09:32Yeah, I have no idea whatsoever.
09:33Well, let me know if you need a hand.
09:34Yeah, I will do.
09:35Definitely.
09:51Well, to be able to work on something with such history and beautifully crafted is quite
09:57a privilege, really.
09:58As with many repairs, things weren't as they first appeared.
10:04I really thought when I first looked at these that this red part was leather.
10:07And it's not.
10:09It's just what appears to be like a latex rubber pad that has been painted red.
10:15I'm a bit flummoxed, really, by how to go about this.
10:19As I look, I can see the iPads were stitched through.
10:23But the pad has come really, really brittle.
10:27So there is no way, really, that I can put that back on there and work with it.
10:32So I need to think of a way to make a new eyepiece for the right goggle that is flexible
10:37and nice and soft, but can be stitched through as well.
10:42Firstly, I'm going to tackle the metal work.
10:45It would be nice to remove some of that oxidation and tarnishing and really see that metal shine under me.
10:52All the while thinking about that elusive iPad that I need to make.
11:02As Dean ponders how to tackle the goggles' unexpected latex, Tim is still grappling to take apart the butcher's bike
11:11that's been ridden into the ground.
11:16Well, that was quite an effort to get those out.
11:19The bike has been dropped on its side and basically bent this side of the handlebar up.
11:24So if you look, this is the way they should be.
11:26That one's flat, that one's pointing upwards.
11:30The next stage now is to straighten it.
11:34I'm going to apply some gentle heat to this particular area here,
11:39and then I'm hoping that I can bring this tube back round again.
12:04I'm hoping that that's got it nearly to where it should be.
12:10I'm very pleased with that, actually.
12:13It just needs a few more tweaks, and then I'm ready to work on the rest of the bike.
12:24Tim has asked me to make a board to fit inside the throne for the bike that he's working on
12:32to commemorate Jimmy.
12:34This type of carrier bike, it's a butcher, a baker, or even a candlestick maker.
12:40Their company would have been advertised on this panel board.
12:45The bulk of the work is in this wooden template.
12:49This fits inside the bike perfectly.
12:52Now I've got my design drawn on there.
12:54I just need to cut it out and open my can of paint.
13:07Charlotte.
13:08Hello.
13:09I've got a bit of a problem with these motorcycle goggles.
13:12Oh, wow.
13:12I thought there was leather, but they aren't.
13:16I think, given that this one's just so hard and brittle,
13:20it probably is latex because that's kind of what happens with age.
13:23I should be able to make you a whole new one, and then you can sew it back on and
13:26they'll be good to go.
13:27Really?
13:27It sounds so simple.
13:28No, it's not simple, but...
13:30Of course it's not.
13:30That would be a life saver, thank you so much.
13:32No problem.
13:33All right.
13:35With the dried up eyepiece of the motorcycle goggles safely in the hands of expert in plastics and rubber, Charlotte,
13:43paintings conservator Lucia is taking in some new scenery.
13:48A depiction of vanishing rural life, it's especially important to Amanda from Powys in Mid Wales.
13:57Hello.
13:58Hi.
13:58Hi.
13:59This is a very interesting painting.
14:01It's lovely, isn't it?
14:02Yes.
14:03Yeah.
14:03Really, very tranquil.
14:05We think it's of a mountain called Eppint, which is in Mid Wales.
14:09Eppint.
14:10Eppint.
14:11Eppint means haunt of the horse, because there always used to be lots of horses up there.
14:16We found it in an attic in a house that we bought on the outskirts of the Eppint.
14:20What a thing to find in an attic.
14:22It says on the bottom, last of the gathering.
14:25So gathering is when livestock is gathered off a mountain, which is done four or five times a year by
14:31the farmers for lambing, for shearing, and for selling as well, because it's their livelihood.
14:37And the last gathering could be the last time the stock was ever gathered off the mountain.
14:44Following the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, the War Office urgently required vast open areas to train
14:53the armed forces in artillery and gunfire.
14:57With land in Mid Wales fitting the bill, families from 54 farms in the Mount Eppint area were given just
15:05months to leave their homes and way of life.
15:09The area remains under the control of the Ministry of Defence.
15:15I think there was about 200 people altogether who had to move their whole life, really.
15:21And I'm guessing we're talking about generations of family in the same spot.
15:25Yeah, my father-in-law was a farmer.
15:27He would have known lots of families who had to be displaced, start their lives again in new communities.
15:33Yeah.
15:34Nobody was able to go back.
15:35The sheep are, there's about 90,000 sheep.
15:38So is it still cordoned off then by the MOD?
15:41It is, yeah.
15:41Right. Farmers and the MOD, they've learnt to work together.
15:45My husband is a fourth generation of the farming family.
15:49He takes sheep back and forth from the Eppint. My two sons do as well.
15:54They've got their own flock.
15:55And do you still participate in the gatherings?
15:58Not personally, but they do.
16:00They do.
16:00And that's why we're so interested in the painting, because there's history behind it.
16:05You're not kidding. This is fantastic.
16:08We don't know what's going on here.
16:10There's something underneath there. Could that be restored?
16:14Yeah, I can see that something's being painted out there, but that paint kind of looks like the same paint
16:19as here, so I'd have to look closely at it.
16:21That seems a curious thing to do, because I think it's like the link, isn't it, between that side of
16:26the stream and this side?
16:27Yes. It would be lovely to see what's going on under the fuzzy bit and to be able to share
16:32it, you know, with people.
16:34That know the story.
16:35That know the story and are still involved in the community.
16:38Fantastic. I'll see what I can do.
16:40Yeah, that would be great. Thank you.
16:42Bye.
16:42Bye.
16:55This is an absolutely fascinating painting. It really has captured a moment in time.
17:00It's quite an amazing composition, actually. You know, we're getting this movement of horses coming down the mountain.
17:06They obviously understood what was happening in this landscape, and I think that's really thrilling.
17:10There is some damage along the edges. I will consolidate them, but they're not the priority at the moment.
17:16This area, which Amanda pointed out, there's definitely something under there, because look, you see on this knee area, this
17:24green is going over onto his suit.
17:26So it is a later edition paint, but I have to work out if it's soluble.
17:30So first things first, I'm going to surface clean the whole painting with my cleaning solution here,
17:35which is basically distilled water with a drop of ammonia, which just breaks the surface tension and allows the water
17:41to lift the surface dirt off.
17:45Look at that. We've got a little flecks of yellow coming through.
17:49This is going to clean so fantastically well. Absolutely.
17:55The best surface dirt I've seen in a long time.
18:05It's a nice red.
18:07What are you looking for, Bev?
18:08I'm just admiring your pigments.
18:10Oh, they're gorgeous, aren't they?
18:11Amazing.
18:12I might borrow this green, if that's right.
18:14Of course.
18:15Lovely. Thank you.
18:19Charlotte's nearly ready to start the complex process of creating the goggles replacement eyepiece.
18:26Latex isn't really a sculptable material.
18:30I can't really get a block of it and just kind of carve it and sand it.
18:34To capture all the detail that is in this eyepiece, I need to sculpt it out of something else.
18:39So I'm going to sculpt out of wax-based clay and then use that dummy eyepiece to make a mould
18:45and cast the final piece in latex.
18:48I've got my card template, so I just need to get it in the shape and then I can start
18:54sculpting it so that it conforms to the shape of the original eyepiece.
19:25I'm really happy with the shape of the new eyepiece.
19:28It matches the original really, really well.
19:31The only problem is, at the moment, it's a bit too smooth.
19:34So I'm going to be using a texture stamp that I made of some cracked paints so that it matches
19:40the original eyepiece.
19:42The clay is currently a little bit too hard to be able to take the texture from the stamp.
19:46So I'm just going to heat it up very briefly with a blow torch to get just the surface a
19:51little bit softer.
20:02I'm just pushing the texture stamp into the clay.
20:08That's imparted a really lovely texture.
20:11I'm going to continue that kind of all the way around the eyepiece.
20:15Once I'm happy with that, I can make my mould and then I'll be able to cast the final piece
20:19in latex.
20:46With the butcher's bike from the 1950s now fully broken down, Tim's about to employ a suitably old school method
20:55for his next fix.
20:56The front carrier was actually the structural bit of the bike that carried the meat for Jimmy and his butchers
21:02round.
21:03There's lots of joints that have come adrift and they need repairing, but there's a big hole here which has
21:09opened up.
21:09Originally the bike was braised together. All of these joints have actually been assembled with brass.
21:16Brass will actually flow really lovely and produce a nice clean joint.
21:21So the first job is just to patch up the hole.
21:23So what I'm going to do is I'm actually going to just braise a little washer which I've turned into
21:28a little curved patch.
21:30It will hopefully look like it's always been there.
21:34It's a way that I prefer because it's an old traditional way of doing it.
21:39I'm just dipping my brass rod in some flux.
21:43It's an acid effectively and basically once it's mixed with the flame and the brass, it helps the brass flow.
21:49It helps it capillary into the joint.
21:52You can start to see the brass seep underneath the washer and you end up with a nice joint.
21:58I'm going to fill in the central hole now.
22:00I'll basically turn it from being a washer to being a patch.
22:08Once that's cleaned up with a file, now we'll know that there's a hole there.
22:17Doing traditional sign writing like this is a bit of a love of mine.
22:22I'm by no means a sign writer, but I just enjoy doing this.
22:26I really am quite envious of the craftspeople of yesterday who would jump up the ladder,
22:32be outside every shop front on every high street would have had their sign painted like this with a brush.
22:37That's how things used to be done. I think it's beautiful.
22:41The race is on one day in the year, which obviously will cause quite a stir.
22:46There's going to be a busy time, but for the rest of the year,
22:49there's going to be a constant reminder to anybody that sees it about Jimmy and his memorial race.
23:10I've made the mould and having a look at it, it's picked up all those fantastic details that I had
23:16on the sculpt,
23:17all those kind of creases and everything that will make it kind of in keeping with the original.
23:23Now I can bring the two parts of the mould together and just pour in the latex,
23:26and that will kind of bond everything together as one piece.
23:45That's the mould all secure and ready to pour some latex in it.
23:50When making moulds, it's really hard to tell whether you've captured all those details.
23:55You don't really know until you've cast the part.
23:58So I won't know how good the mould is until this is dried.
24:07With the surface dirt now lifted from the painting of the last gathering,
24:11Lucia started to tackle the areas that had been hidden.
24:17I've taken off this overpaint layer of this landscape at the back,
24:21and it's just revealed more of the original landscape.
24:24But I'm starting on this big shadowy lump of overpaint by this figure.
24:30I don't know what's going on under here.
24:31I don't know why anybody would have blocked it out.
24:34But hopefully I'll be able to open all that up and we'll find out what's hidden.
24:38I'm just softening this paint there here.
24:41I can see it's actually lifting up some of the paint.
24:46If I go in with a scalpel, I should be able to feel those edges.
24:53And it comes off just in small areas.
24:59Oh, it's really great. This is really starting to come out.
25:04Whatever's under here is slowly being revealed.
25:08And I'll tell you something, it's never not thrilling.
25:12Nerve-racking, but thrilling.
25:22Tim's also making progress in his quest to make the butcher's bike safe for riding.
25:29So I've cleaned and repaired all of the things that were wrong with this bike.
25:34Now it's the exciting part of putting it all back together again.
25:40The cranks that the pedals go on are held on with what's known as cotter pins,
25:45and it's a very old-fashioned way of fitting cranks to a bicycle.
25:48This is the original cotter pin.
25:51As a comparison, that's a brand new one.
25:54So as you can see, the difference.
25:57Eventually, if someone was going to ride it, particularly uphill, that is going to break.
26:01So a brand new one is going to solve the problem.
26:04So to fit the cranks, it basically attaches everything together.
26:08So this little fitting here is key.
26:12So now the cotter pin is loosely fitted.
26:14I'm going to use this lovely tool here, which is very ancient.
26:18It's actually a cotter pin press.
26:20And the purpose of this basically is to push the cotter pin further in
26:24to allow me to get a nut and a washer on the other side.
26:26So as I pull this lever, you can see the cotter slowly move into the crank.
26:34So that's as far as in as I can get it.
26:38Now I've got a lovely long piece of thread on this side.
26:42And that allows me to fit this washer and nut on the end.
26:50So that's now locked on solid.
26:52It's not going anywhere.
26:53Now this is back on the bike.
26:55I'm excited to continue on.
26:57We're putting the rest of it back together.
27:05This is great.
27:07I'm starting to see something in here.
27:09The little bit that I've uncovered seems to suggest
27:14we've got another one of these lovely Welsh sheepdogs,
27:18rather like the ones down here.
27:20I mean, we've got a little paw here, here and here,
27:24and a black body, but it's starting to look like a dog.
27:27This is really exciting.
27:44This has been an absolute labour of love,
27:47and I am thrilled with the fact
27:50that we've got this little dog back on the scene.
27:53I mean, it's been hidden for many, many decades.
27:56Right, here we go.
27:58Ooh.
27:59Oh, look at that.
28:00I think it's going to come off beautifully.
28:06Oh, look.
28:07It's got a little black nose.
28:11Honestly, these little revelations in front of your very eyes.
28:16It's absolutely a privilege to do this.
28:19He's a very handsome dog, and I think he's the leader of the pack.
28:26Apart from a few losses in this area,
28:29I honestly don't know why this dog was painted out.
28:33It's absolutely fantastic, and it makes the picture.
28:37As far as I'm concerned, that is the dynamic centre of the picture,
28:40so it's really brilliant.
28:44As Lucia continues to reveal the hidden delights
28:47of the painting's Welsh landscape,
28:51Tim's almost finished restoring the butcher's bike
28:54from the south coast of England.
28:57So it feels brilliant to get these handlebars
28:59and these brakes back in the bike.
29:01It has been an absolute privilege to work on this,
29:04considering how many people have actually ridden it.
29:08So that's the front brake working perfectly.
29:11I'm really pleased with that.
29:12The rear brake needs setting up.
29:14There's a few more bits and pieces that need putting on the bike,
29:17the saddle, the pedals.
29:17And then it's ready to go back to Gary.
29:24Once ridden by a young butcher's hand
29:26as he delivered meat around town,
29:29this carrier bike was then furiously pedalled
29:32by thousands of locals racing for charity over the years.
29:38Gary has returned to see if his dad's bike is safe
29:42to ride up the hill in Hastings once again.
29:48Hi, Gary. Welcome back.
29:50Hello, Gary. Hello there.
29:50Nice to see you.
29:51How are you feeling?
29:52A little bit nervous, maybe, but hopefully delighted.
29:57Now, this was a well-used bike.
29:59I've seen quite a lot of action.
30:00Yeah, over 100 people have been on it every year,
30:02so it's a lot of people.
30:03Over 3,000.
30:04There's a lot of bent and broken bits on it.
30:06That's why I've come here,
30:07because I really wanted to get it back in good shape
30:09so it can carry on, hopefully, for another 37 years at least.
30:13Would I like to see what Tim's done?
30:15Yeah, oh yeah, definitely.
30:16Come on, Tim.
30:16Come on in, okay.
30:21Oh, wow.
30:25Looks almost brand new.
30:28Can I touch the pedals?
30:29Yeah.
30:30Wow.
30:32He's really inspecting it, isn't he?
30:34He's going for it, isn't he?
30:35Wow, that's good.
30:38Brakes are working.
30:40Wow, that's really nice.
30:42Oh, lovely bit of sign writing, I know.
30:44That's great.
30:44Yeah, well, that was Dom that did that, so...
30:47Oh, that's good.
30:48Thanks a lot.
30:49It almost fills fast already.
30:52Yeah, it's lovely.
30:54Fantastic.
30:55Now, we don't have a hill,
30:56but we do have a nice little area outside the barn, so...
30:59Oh, great. I can give it a go.
31:01You can give it a go?
31:01I can't wait.
31:04Right, let's get the door.
31:10Hey.
31:12That is off.
31:13Look at that.
31:22He's a racer up by heart, isn't he?
31:24He's quite quick as well.
31:25Yeah, yeah, yeah.
31:26Do you know what?
31:27It's so rewarding to see all my hard work being used by someone.
31:32Yeah.
31:32Just being enjoyed.
31:35The little bell's ringing as well.
31:37It's brilliant.
31:38How was that?
31:39Oh, it was great.
31:40It feels nice and firm, nice and safe.
31:42Just putting my hands on these bars now.
31:44I just feel that rush of adrenaline.
31:46It's going to be great to take it back now
31:48and get on with the race for next year.
31:50Fantastic.
31:50You're going to win.
31:51I can feel it.
31:53Oh, there he is.
31:55Oh, hey.
31:57That is off.
31:59Must be hard on that gravel.
32:01Yeah.
32:04I never thought I'd see my dad's bike like this again
32:07and it looks really in top condition,
32:09so hopefully it's going to last a few more years now.
32:12It symbolises my dad's legacy that he had
32:15of riding this carrier bike around in Hastings
32:17and also the race.
32:18It just keeps his memory going.
32:20I think there'll be a lot more people this year
32:22that are going to want to ride on it.
32:33Next, a project in need of Will's carpentry skills.
32:38Hi there.
32:39Hi.
32:41Hello.
32:42Oh, lovely.
32:43Right, let's get it in the barn.
32:47That's so cool.
32:48Come in, come in.
32:49This nautical treasure belongs to sisters
32:53Lindsay Skinner and Karen Price
32:55from Breaston in the East Midlands.
32:58Wow, look at this.
33:00So this is Puffin.
33:02This is the boat that our dad made for us
33:03when we were little.
33:04So it was my birthday.
33:05I was two years old
33:07and he was there waiting for me in the garden
33:10and I immediately went and got my favourite teddies
33:12and sat with them on the seat.
33:15The little seat lifts up.
33:16Oh, that's really sweet.
33:17So we could put little things in there
33:18and we'd put our teddies in there
33:20and we'd sit in there
33:21and we'd go off on our adventures.
33:23We'd fill it with grass cuttings as well
33:25and make nests and stuff.
33:26We would.
33:27When dad built Puffin, he worked at the bus repair works
33:31and that's where he made Puffin on his lunch hour
33:35using bits of scrap that he found around.
33:38That's really clever.
33:39So would this be like the panel from the side of a bus then?
33:42Quite possibly.
33:43Does it like bus flooring on the inside?
33:45Yes.
33:45It could be.
33:46What was his name?
33:47He was Geoffrey.
33:49But he hated that.
33:50So he was only ever known as Geoff.
33:52As Geoff.
33:52Sadly, he passed away 12 years ago.
33:56I'm sorry to hear that.
33:57He was always there for us, wasn't he?
34:00Always dependable.
34:01He was so capable, so able of making and fixing things.
34:07Dad built us other things.
34:09So we built us a sandpit, a slide, a swing.
34:12I'm so jealous.
34:13I cannot believe that.
34:14We were the luckiest kids.
34:16Puffin's just a real key part of our childhood
34:19and then he was kept safe in his shed until we had our children
34:23and then he's come back out again
34:25and they've been playing with Puffin as well,
34:27which is lovely to see.
34:28And as much as we've tried to look after him
34:30and take care of him,
34:31another 10 years have been played on
34:34and the weather have now taken their toll.
34:37So he's just had to stop in our mum's garage for now.
34:41The kids can't really play on him.
34:42What would you like me to do with this?
34:43It's all the seat, the bottom, the top.
34:47It's all a bit spongy in places.
34:50Well, that's spongy.
34:51That's underneath.
34:53This is spongy and creaky.
34:56Should have wheels.
34:57Right, so you've got one there.
34:59Well, I've got two.
35:00One and a half.
35:03Lovely to see it restored to a point that, you know,
35:06it can be played on just the same as we did when we were kids
35:09and see all the bits back on it as it should be.
35:12Puffin is granddad's boat to the children.
35:15Yeah.
35:15He never met his grandchildren
35:17and it's that tangible link to him
35:19that they wouldn't otherwise have had.
35:21My little boy is three.
35:23He loves playing on it.
35:25He keeps saying,
35:25why don't we have Puffin anymore?
35:27And he's like, well, we need to get him fixed.
35:30I will do my very best
35:31to keep as much of your dad's signature work there,
35:35but also make it strong and sturdy enough for kids to play with.
35:40Brilliant.
35:40Thank you, Will.
35:41That's fantastic.
35:42I'll see you soon.
35:43Bye-bye.
35:44Bye-bye.
36:00This is such a great boat.
36:02I wish I had something like this as a child.
36:05At some point, damp's got an end
36:07and I think that's where the majority of the damage has taken place.
36:11The bow, this is not salvageable at all.
36:14That's delaminating.
36:17The dashboard is broken and crumbling away.
36:22The seats panel here is breaking away at the hinge on the back.
36:28Thankfully, the majority of the solid wood can be saved.
36:32All the metal looks like it's in pretty good condition,
36:34but the bow, the floor and the seats are going to have to be replaced.
36:51Charlotte's removed the latex eyepiece from the mould she made
36:54to help Dean with his repair of the motorcycle goggles.
36:59Charlotte, how are we getting on?
37:01Yeah, it's all done.
37:02It's incredible.
37:03It's nice and bendy, this one.
37:05So clever.
37:05So you think that'll sew in okay?
37:07Yeah.
37:08The second needle and thread, right?
37:09It's nice and strong, a bit of flex.
37:11Should go in nicely.
37:12Thanks so much for your help.
37:14Oh, you're welcome.
37:14All right, mate.
37:15See you later.
37:16See you in a bit.
37:22It's kind of blown my mind actually how accurate it is to the original.
37:26I need to now paint it red to match the other one.
37:29I will paint the original as well.
37:33There's a lot of cracking on there where it's worn away.
37:36So if you can paint that back red,
37:38what that's going to do is consolidate everything
37:40and just stop it deteriorating further.
37:44Now I'm going to do the new one first.
37:46The good thing about latex is it will take acrylic paint quite well.
37:51That's actually going on really nicely.
37:53Charlotte's done an incredible job with this texture.
37:56And as I'm putting the paint on, it's really showcasing that.
38:00And once it's dry, I can get on with the tricky task of sewing it back into the frame.
38:13.
38:29Though he's had to rebuild the rotten parts of Little Boat Puffin,
38:33Will's making sure her character won't be lost.
38:38Well, I've replaced the bow of the boat and the base of the boat with new plywood,
38:42and it's so much stronger.
38:44I have also managed to retain a panel on the inside where the seat is.
38:50That must have been the flooring of the inside of the bus or something like that.
38:54And I really want to keep this because it's a great nod to Geoff's work.
38:58This is where they would spend so much time sitting down,
39:01letting their imagination run wild.
39:04So I'm going to pop this back in.
39:11Well, that's slotted into place.
39:12I'm pleased I managed to save that.
39:15Unlike the original top of the seat, that is breaking away.
39:20And I know that Lindsay and Karen want their children to play with this.
39:23So I've used that as a template and I've cut out a new seat.
39:28Now I've got two kids and this is really going to inspire me to make something quite similar.
39:34And just fixing it up kind of gives me that same bit of excitement that Geoff must have had when
39:40he bought this home.
39:42Oh, yes. Very smooth. That's very nice.
39:45And there's enough space to put all your teddies in.
39:48I just need to add on the last bits of trim that I can turn my attention to the dashboard.
39:59To reattach the eyepieces to the motorcycle goggles, Shoemaker Dean is about to take a needle to latex.
40:07Now, although I am sewing, which is a very familiar technique to me, I do it almost daily.
40:13Shallot has only made one eyepiece for me to go with.
40:17So I really have to get this right and hope that nothing goes wrong.
40:23I'm going to do a saddle stitch on this, which is one piece of thread and two needles.
40:30And they pass each other through the same hole.
40:33Creates a very, very strong stitch.
40:40So far it's going well. I've got five stitches in.
40:45They're very nice and secure.
40:46And as I pull it tight, it's not cutting through the latex, which is really quite a relief.
40:53So it's just a case of being really patient and really slow.
40:58I'm not trying to rush a result.
41:10Paintings restorer Lucia is ready for her next steps on the last gathering.
41:16I'm at the point now when I finish the cleaning and removing all the overpaint.
41:20I'm now going to concentrate on the crack in the paint here.
41:23And that was completely covered over with overpaint.
41:26And then there's a real, really bad ding in the bottom, which I will also treat.
41:30And I'm going to do that by flowing in some of this special adhesive.
41:35It's an acrylic.
41:36This is actually a really tough adhesive as well.
41:40So it should hold it in place really quite nicely.
41:45The moisture in this adhesive will soften all the fibres, shrink them a little bit.
41:50The whole thing will pull together and it will go nice and flat when it's under weights.
41:55OK.
41:56So let's get things in place.
41:58I need the release paper.
42:01Line it up at the edge.
42:04Put this piece on top.
42:09OK.
42:09So I can leave that to dry.
42:11I'm going to turn it round and do the same on the bottom part.
42:14And once everything's in place when it's dry, the next phase is going to be a brush coat of varnish.
42:19And I'm retouching the little areas of scuffs and dings that are across the painting.
42:24So, yeah, it's good.
42:34To replace the next rotten part of puffing, Will's taking inspiration from the original maker.
42:42Well, I've tried to separate the steering wheel from the dashboards and everything's just started to break away in my
42:50hands.
42:51Ah, there we are.
42:52Beautiful.
42:53Jeff was so resourceful when it came to making this.
42:57I love the fact that this steering wheel is actually, it looks like kind of like an old fire extinguisher
43:02or something like that.
43:04But to a child, it is a steering wheel.
43:06Well, now that I've got that off, it's time to make a new dashboard.
43:11Now, I've got a bit of a plan up my sleeve.
43:14Not only am I going to make the new dash out of solid wood so it doesn't delaminate,
43:18I was kind of thinking I could add like a compass to the left and a speedometer to the right.
43:26Then I'm going to use my trusty laser engraving machine to laser that detail in place.
43:33I've been working out a couple of designs here.
43:35I'm going with like an old school compass design for the left.
43:39And for the right hand side, I've got a speedometer.
43:44Pop that in there.
43:48Here I go.
44:13Hey Tim, did you ever used to have a toy like this when you were growing up?
44:16I didn't have a boat, but I actually had a pedal car that my dad found in the scrap bin.
44:21Really?
44:21Yeah.
44:21My dad did it out for Christmas and I came down Christmas morning and it was there sitting with a
44:27little dashboard just like you've printed off there.
44:30And it was the best toy that I've ever had.
44:33And my girls now use it.
44:35Amazing.
44:37Thanks to the artistry of both Charlotte and Dean, the repair of the motorcycle goggles is nearly sewn up.
44:45The goggles have gone back together really, really well.
44:47So fulfilling to see them come to this stage.
44:51Now moving on to the strap, it's kept its elasticity, which I'm really happy about.
44:57So now I can get these back on the goggles and they are ready for Paddy to collect.
45:03I've really, really enjoyed working on these.
45:06It's so different to what I would normally do.
45:10That's hooked in there really nicely.
45:12And they look fantastic.
45:20Champion motorcyclist George Brockerton wore these goggles at the peak of his racing career.
45:26But time saw them hit the skids.
45:30Looking good.
45:31You pleased?
45:32Yeah, really.
45:33It looks so smart.
45:34Well done.
45:36George's son Paddy has returned with his son Gary to see if this precious memento of his dad is back
45:45to its glory days.
45:46Hello.
45:47Welcome back, guys.
45:49Hi, guys.
45:49How are you doing?
45:50Welcome back to the bar.
45:51Nice to see you again.
45:52How are you feeling?
45:53Well, excited.
45:55Excited because I have such a connection with my father's achievements.
46:01And these were always the most important thing to him.
46:05Yeah.
46:07Do you want to take a look?
46:08Well...
46:08You ready?
46:10I suppose we have to, don't we?
46:11I think we're ready.
46:18I think we're ready.
46:28I think we're ready.
46:29Oh, that's amazing.
46:30Wow.
46:31It's brilliant, isn't it?
46:32You're very welcome.
46:37All right.
46:39That's just the way they were.
46:41Isn't it?
46:41That's just the way they were.
46:46You're very welcome.
46:47You're so welcome.
46:47I thought, actually, these were leather.
46:50Yes.
46:50On first look.
46:51And then realized they were kind of a latex rubber.
46:54Yeah.
46:55So I had to call the lovely Charlotte in to help me.
46:58That's a great job.
46:59That's great.
46:59That's a brilliant job.
47:00That's wonderful.
47:01It's quite clear to us how proud of your father you really are.
47:06Yes.
47:07He left a real legacy that we're very proud of.
47:10I can see how emotional my dad is because, obviously, he was so proud of his dad.
47:16But I have to say, I'm just as proud of my dad as you were of yours.
47:22So, you know, it's just such a great thing that we have these.
47:26They're fantastic.
47:27Well, I have no goggles to leave you.
47:28Well, me too.
47:29Well, you do now.
47:31You do now.
47:34You're welcome.
47:35Thank you both so much.
47:36Enjoy.
47:36Bye-bye.
47:40I was very proud of my father and his achievements.
47:46And they'll be passed over to Gary and his brother Stephen.
47:50And they'll cherish these in the future, I have no doubt.
47:54Yeah.
48:03Will is on a roll, restoring Puffin, the homemade boat.
48:08Well, I'm now looking at the wheels.
48:10One of them has broken into pieces.
48:12And the other one is still together, but incredibly brittle.
48:16Now, I could buy new plastic wheels.
48:19But I think in the spirit of Jeff, I thought it'd be really nice to turn some out of wood.
48:26I found a nice bit of teak here.
48:28Teak's great because it has lots of natural oils in it.
48:30So, it'll be better in the elements outside.
48:50I'm using my turning tools here to start to get that nice wheel profile.
48:57It's quite a simple shape, but I think once it's all turned in, it's going to look really quite sweet.
49:19Will's asked me to make a cushion and a flag for the Puffin boat.
49:24So, I've sourced this really fun Puffin fabric, of course, keeping in with the theme.
49:32And what I've done is I've also sourced an orange, which is what I'm going to pipe the edges of
49:38the cushion with.
49:39The fabric's going to complement the boat perfectly and it's going to look super fun.
49:53Well, that's my first wheel done and I have to say it looks really smart.
49:58So much better than the plastic wheel and actually more in keeping with the boat that Jeff made.
50:04That's one down, one more to go.
50:20It's time for Lucia to make her final retouches to the Welsh landscape painting.
50:26I'm going to start on the dog.
50:28This area is the most damaged area.
50:31There's a lot of little abrasions where the dog has been partly rubbed out.
50:36The little bit of retouching is going to hopefully really reconstruct that whole figure of the dog.
50:42I'm mixing dry pigments with synthetic resins.
50:46I'm going to go straight into the body of the dog and just start dotting in the losses
50:53and try and bring the dog to life.
50:58I've loved working on this painting.
51:00It's always a delight to find a missing part of it and it really sort of makes the composition complete.
51:10Once all that's done and I've done all the rest of the damage, be ready to hand back to Amanda.
51:15I'm very excited about that.
51:21This artwork immortalizes a ritual that was carried out by a thriving farming community before they had to give up
51:29their land.
51:30But painted over and left in a loft, it was only telling part of its tale.
51:37From a farming family herself, Amanda hopes it can continue to honor those who came before her.
51:45How great to see you again, and you.
51:47How are you feeling, Amanda?
51:49Excited.
51:50It had this patch that was covered over.
51:53I'm hoping we'll find out what was underneath it.
51:57Are you ready to see it?
51:58Definitely, yeah.
52:12Oh, wow.
52:15Oh, and another dog.
52:19That was underneath another dog.
52:21Oh, look at the colours of it.
52:25It's lovely.
52:26Thank you so much.
52:28It's wonderful.
52:30Yeah.
52:31So detailed, isn't it?
52:33I know, I know.
52:33I'm just pleased to be able to share it with people.
52:37And the wonder for me is that you're actually following in the footsteps of these guys in the modern world.
52:42Our boys are in their 20s now.
52:45They're going to be gathering again this weekend.
52:47So it's a really rich heritage.
52:50Really proud of it.
52:51It's just lovely.
52:52It's brilliant.
52:53Thank you so much.
52:54It's been a pleasure.
52:56It really has.
52:56Good.
52:56I'm thrilled to bits with it.
52:58Brilliant.
53:00I'll get the door for you.
53:02Okay.
53:06Lucci has done just an amazing job of the painting.
53:09So excited to be able to show it to people.
53:13And, you know, what it represents to our family and our community.
53:18The local people who gather the hill.
53:20We can keep the legacy of the eppence and of the gathering for a long time to come.
53:34The restoration of the good ship Puffin is almost complete.
53:40Well, I've just finished putting the wheels on and the woodwork looks very light here.
53:44Everything that I have replaced looks very light.
53:47So I'm going to pretty much rag some stain onto the surface.
53:51And it's going to help tone it down.
53:58Now I always love this part of any job.
54:01The finishing.
54:02And this really shows off all the hard work.
54:05It's been a pleasure to inject fresh life into this boat.
54:09And sort of preserve those memories for Lindsay and Karen.
54:14Once this is dried, I'm going to seal everything with an external varnish,
54:19which is going to protect the wood.
54:21Then it's ready to go back to Lindsay and Karen.
54:27Exposure to the dam meant this much-loved boat fashioned from scraps
54:32arrived more shipwreck than shipshape.
54:37Sisters Lindsay and Karen have returned with their children,
54:41Toby, Quinn, Josh and Charlotte,
54:44to see if their dad's clever creation is fit for more pint-sized play.
54:50Hello.
54:51Hi.
54:52Hello.
54:52Come in.
54:53Come in.
54:55Who's excited?
54:56Me.
54:57Me.
54:57Yes.
54:59What are we hoping to see today?
55:01Puffin.
55:02Oh, so you know what's underneath there?
55:04Yeah.
55:05Right.
55:06Okay.
55:07Who's ready to see Puffin?
55:10Well, I am.
55:10We are, right?
55:11Yes.
55:12Kids?
55:12You ready?
55:13Yes.
55:14Three, two, one.
55:18Wow!
55:19It feels amazing.
55:22Oh, I feel quite overwhelmed.
55:24Oh, my goodness.
55:26Look at this.
55:28Oh.
55:29It's already getting in.
55:31I like it.
55:32Yeah, he likes it.
55:33I can act and climb up it.
55:35Yeah?
55:36Oh.
55:41Dad would have loved it.
55:43Yeah.
55:43To see it step back like that.
55:46Dad would be blown away.
55:47Yeah.
55:47You really would.
55:49The hinge is back on.
55:50Look at that.
55:50Oh, wow.
55:51And the seat opens again.
55:52The secret compartment.
55:54My treasure again.
55:56Yeah.
55:57Oh, that's an amazing cushion with the Puffins on as well.
56:00Sonaz has done a great job at making the cushion and the flag as well.
56:04And it was my pleasure.
56:05I had great fun.
56:06Oh, thank you very much.
56:06Thank you so much.
56:07It's beautiful.
56:08North, east and south.
56:10Oh.
56:11Look at this.
56:12Oh, look at this.
56:14Josh, what do you think of the boat?
56:15All right.
56:16Good job.
56:17I think it's amazing.
56:19It's Puffin, but better.
56:21Do you know what?
56:22It's been a pleasure to work on it.
56:23Thank you so much for bringing it in.
56:25Thank you so much.
56:26Well, it means so much to our family, what you've done.
56:28If you grab the door, I'll wheel it out.
56:31OK.
56:35Dad never got to meet his grandchildren.
56:38And it's so amazing to see that something he built for me and Karen
56:44can now be part of their childhood.
56:46They've got memories now that are to do with granddad.
56:51It's granddad's boat.
56:52It's our Puffin boat.
56:54I'm looking forward to playing on it.
56:56And we can play Pirates with Josh.
57:00I love it!
57:07If you have a treasured possession that's seen better days,
57:11and you think the team can help,
57:13please get in touch at bbc.co.uk
57:16slash takepile
57:17and join us in the repair shop.
57:27I'll say that incredible.
57:32So much fun.
57:50It will beielle.
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